Starting device for internal-combustion engines.



G. J. ANDERSON. I STARTING DEVICE FOR INTERNAL COMBUSTION ENGINES.

APPLICATION FILED JAMS} 1911.

999,195. Y Patented Aug. 1,1911.

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www Y 99% WW G. J. ANDERSON.

STARTING DEVICE FOR INTERNAL 001131131 1011 BNGINBs.

APPLICATION FILED JAN. 3, 1911.

999,195, Patented Aug". 1,1911.

- 3 SHEETSSHEET 2 I a y qsm Swmzwtoz G. J. ANDERSON.

STARTING DEVICE FOR INTERNAL COMBUSTION ENGINES.

APPLICATION FILED JAILB, 1911.

= Patented Aug. 1, 1911.

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' TARTlNG DEVICE FOR INTERNAL COMBUSTIOE,ENGINES.

Specification of Letters Patent. I

. Application filed January 3, 19 11. I Serial $0,600,583; Y

. latented aa 1,ieai.

To all whom it may concern Be it known that I, GEORGE CltlZGll of the United States, residing at West Chazy, in the county of Clinton and.

State of New York, have invented certain new and useful Improvements inStarting Devices. for Internal-Combustion Engines,

of which the following is a specification.

This, invention relates, to manually operated starting devices for internal combus- Y tion engines; and it is the object of the invention to provide an improved mechanism of this kind which will be automatically disconnected from the starting shaft in case the engine should start backward, or kick back, as it is commonly termed.

Another object of the invention is to provide a starting mechanism which can be readily applied to any ordinary internal combustion engine, either automobile, marine,'or stationary,without altering or modifyi'ng the structure thereof.

The invention comprises a starting shaft,

means for coupling the same ,to the engine' crank shaft, and a pawl-and-ratchet mechy anism between the starting shaft' and a housing, said paWl and-ratchet mechanism'being arranged so as to permit aforward, but not.

a reverse motion of the hand crank. A

yielding connection between the hand crankand the starting shaft is also provided,-

which connection is so arranged that these wo elements operate together as one for turning the crank shaft against the highest compression, but when the engine kicks back the starting shaft is disconnected from the hand crank, so that the reverse motion will not be communicated to the latter.

The invention also consists in a novel :construction and arrangement of arts to be hereinafter described and claime In the accompanying drawings, forming a part of this specification, Figure 1 is a 1ongitudinal section of the starting mechanism which is the subject of the present invention. Fig. 2 is a cross-sectionon the line 22 of Fig. 1. Fig. 3 is a perspective view of the pawl-carrying member, removed. Fig. 4 is a longitudinal section of a modification.-

In the drawings, 10 denotes a portion of the engine frame or other suitable support to which is firmly secured a housin which carries the starting mechanism. Thls housing is in two parts connected by a screw 5. ANDnRsoN,

jointor other suitableameans, as shown in Fig. 1, said parts being indicated at 11 and means 14'passing through the frame and the flange;

The housing herein described incloses a starting shaft 15 which is'in axial alinement with the engine crank shaft,- a Ifnagment of the latter being shown at 16. The housing is formed at its base'with a bearing portion 17 which supports the starting shaft, and the latter passes loosely through ano ening 18 in the frame 10,'-and extends 1nto close proximity to the crank shaft. The op-'- posh ends of the two shafts carry clutch members 19 and 20, respectively. The starting shaft is movable in the direction of its, length to bring its clutch member 19 into locking engagement with the clutch member 20 of the crank shaft, whereby said shafts are coupled together, and the motion of one will be transmitted to the other. The two so clutch members have circumferential flanges .21 between which is interposed acoiledreleasing spring 22, the function of which lat- I ter is to normally hold the clutch members separated and thus disconnect the shaftsfsa Upon .pushing the starting shaftforwardly in the direction of the crank shaft to interlock the clutch members, the spring 22 is compressed, and when the starting shaft is released, it is moved back, by the spring, 'in

the opposite direction, to disengage its clutch member from the clutch member of the crank shaft.

At 23 is indicatedan ordinary hand crank which is located on the outside of the housing, and is made fast to a short shaft 24 which is supported in an opening 25 in the part 12 of the housing, and has an enlarged and tubular portion 26 located in said portion of the housing. The shoulder 2'? formed by the enlargement of the shaft 24 engages the end wall of the portion 12 of the housing, and thus limits the outwardmovement of the shaft. The shaft 24 is in axial alinement with the starting shaft 15, and the latter extends into-the bore 28 of the tubular portion 26 of-the former, and

also into an axial opening 29'in the shaft 24 at the inner end of said bore, said open ing thus providing. a support for the end of the'starting shaft.

The shaft 24 carries a disk 30 which latter carries 'a series of pawls'31, the periphery of the disk having notches 32 in which the pawlsseat, said 'pawls being blocks which 'fit in the notches and have their outward surface toothed. At the inner ends of the notches are pockets 33 in which seat coiled springs 34 which engage the inner ends of the pawl blocks, and serve to force the sameoutwardly from the notchessufiiciently to bring their teeth into engagement with the teeth. ofthe ratchet ring to be presently described The disk has a hub 35 which is externally screw+threaded and screws into the bore 28. whereby the connection between the This plate and" the flange close up the notches 32'at the ends thereof, and serve-to prevent displacement of the pawlsBl.

' A yielding coupling between the disk 30 and the starting shaft 15 is provided. g This coupling comprises the following means:

The face of the hub 35 is located in the bore 28, and has a series of uniformly spaced radial notches 38, any two diametrically opposite ones of which are adapted to be entered by a transverse pin 39 carried by the starting shaft, and projecting from diametrically opposite sides thereof, said pin being made fast to the shaft by any suitable means. Behind the pin is located a strong coiled spring 40, a washer 41being interposed between thepin and. one end of the spring. The other end of the spring abuts against the inner end of the bore 28. The spring serves to yieldingly holdfthe' pin in the notches. I i V In the portion 11 of the housing issecured, by means of a key or any other suitable device, 42, a ratchetring 43, the teeth 44 of which are on its inner periphery. This ring encircles the disk 30, and its teeth'are adapted to be engaged by the teethof thepawls 31. The width of the ring 43 and its teeth is such that the pawls will remain in engagement with the teeth when the starting shaft 15 in advanced, as well as in re tracted, position.

In operation, to start the engine, the en- 'tire mechanism herein. described, except the housing, is pushed forwardly'by taking. hold of the hand crank 23, whereupon the start-' ing shaft 15 is advanced in the direction of 0 the crank shaft 16, and the clutch members 19 and 20 are engaged with each other, thereby coupling the two shafts together.

, The hand crank is now given a turn to :o-

tate the crank shaft in the proper direction to start the engine, and after the engine'- starts, the clutch members automatically disengage, theinclined contiguous surfaces of the teeth of the members causing the starting shaft to back away from the crank shaft,

whereupon thestarting shaft is disconnected from the crank shaft. The motion of the hand crank to start the engine is transmitted to the disk 30 by reason of the connection of- -the latter with the portion26 of the shaft- 24, and the motion of the disk is transmitted to the starting shaft by';reason of the engagement: of the pin 39 with the notches 38.

The pawl and ratchet teeth are arranged to permit theparts to turn freely in a direction to 'start the engine, the pawlsslipping over theratcheti teeth during this movement of the'parts. If'the. engine should kick back the pawls at once takehold, and lock the disk 30 against the reverse rotation, and the pin 39 slips back one or more notches against the pressure of the spring 40.

The average lifting effort necessary in cranking an automobile is fromone hundred to two hundred pounds, and for-a large, high-compression engine, a lifting effort of as muchas four hundred pounds is required. The force of the back kick is almostillim; itableran'ging around a a ton pressure. For average motor cars, therefore, the spring 40 and the parts cooperating there with are so designed that a lift of from six 1 hundred to eight hundred pounds'son the hand crank is transmitted without back slip, but when the back kick reaches, say, one thousand pounds pressure, a back slip does occur, and the hand crank is safely held. by

the pawl-and-ratchet mechanism. 7

The notches 38 govern thesynchronism of the devicethat is, the hand crank is always in a predetermined advantageous position of its swing when the engine passes the point of highest; compression, no matter in which notch the pin 39 seats. The number of these notches, therefore, depends on the engine to which, the device is attached. For example, if the clutch members 19 and 20 have six teeth, as shown, then six notches 38 must be provided. Butif the clutch members have only four teeth, then four notches should be provided;

It will be noted that the" ratchet ring 43 has eighty-five teeth, and that twelve pawl.

one block to the next, center to center, is

seven and one-twelfth teeth. Therefore, the greatest drop back is one-twelfth of a tooth. The release of the hand crank when the engine kicks back is, therefore, practically .20 p side the engine frame.

show the blocks dimensioned my I use instantaneous,'and all danger of injury to I I readily fitted 'to' anyrinternal combustion engines, since it is entirely outside the frame 10.

Fig. 4 discloses a slightly modified structure designed, to be employed where many engines of the same kind are to be fitted with the invention, and Where space allows a portion of the housing to be located inv Referring specifioally toFig. 4, '45 denotes a part of the engine frame to which t'hehousing 46, incloslng the mechanism, is bolted or otherwise rigidly secured. The outer end of this housing is closedby a screw-cap 47 having a central opening 48 which serves as a bearing for a shaft- 49 fitted at its outer end with a handcia'nk 50. "On that portion of the shaft 49 whichextends into the housing is mounted'a disk 51 carrying pawls 52, similar to the pawls already described, and adapted to engage ratchet teeth on the inner periphery of a'ring-53, also similarto the ratchet ring heretoforedescribed, said ring being mounted in the housing, and fastened thereto by a key or other suitable means 54.

- The disk 51 is made fast to the shaft 49 by a pin 55 and a key 56 or any other suitable means. The disk 51 is provided with a hub 57, similar to the hub'35, and said hub 57 screws into a housing 58 which passes loosely through an opening in the housing 46, as

well'as through an-opening in the frame 45.

The housing 58 inclosesa spring 59 engaging at one of its endsa washer 60 which latter engages a pin,6l carried by a starting shaft 62, said pin corresponding to the pin 39, and enga 1n notches 63 in the face of the hub 57, snni ar to the notches 38. The starting shaft 62 is in axial alinement'with the shaft 49, and extends for a short distance at its inner end into the bore of the. hub 57. The other end of-the shaft extends through an opening in the housing 58, and is located in close proximity to the crank shaft 64. That end of the starting shaft 62 which is opposite the end of the crank shaft 64 carries a transverse pin 65 which is adapted to engage thenotches of a clutch head 66 fitted Copies of this patent may be obtained for fivecents each, by addressing the to the end of the crank shaft, when the start-n ing device is pushed forwardly to lock the .two shafts together. This clutch mechanism automatically disengages in the same manher as the clutch members 19 and 20 already described, when the engine starts, a release spring 67 being also provided.

.The operation of the modified mechanism is the same as that of the first described mechanism, the starting shaft being clutched to the engine crank shaft by pushing forwardly on the hand crank 50. The'automatic release when the engine kicks back is also effected in the manner already described.

Iclaim:' 1-. In a starting device for internal combustion engines, a stationary housing, a ratchet ring secured in the housing, the

teeth of the ring being on its inner periphcry, a hand crank, a shaft on which the hand crank is mounted, said shaft having a tubular portion extending into the housing and supported by one end thereof, a starting shaft supported by the other end of the housing and extending thereinto, and also into the bore of the tubular portion of the first-mentioned shaft, a disk encircled by the ratchet ring and having a hub portion secured in the bore of the tubular portion hub having radial notches, a coupling member carried by the starting shaft within the aforesaid bore, yielding means for normally engaging said coupling member with the aforesaid notches, and radially slidable of the first-mentioned shaft, the face of the pawls carried by the disk and engageable with the aforesaid ratchet ring for locking the disk against reverse motion.

2. In astarting device for internal combust-ion engines, a stationary housing, a ratchet ring secured in the houslng, theteeth of the ring being on its inner periphcry, ahand crank, a shaft carrying said hand crank sa'id shaft extending into the housing, a coupling member mounted on the shaftwithin the housing and encircled by the ratchet. ring, .a' starting shaft extending into the housing, yielding means for couplin'g'the starting shaft to the coupling member, and radially slidable pawls carried by the coupling member and engageable with the aforesaid ratchet ring for locking the member against reverse motion.

In testimony whereof I affix my in presence of two witnesses.

. .GEORGE J. ANDERSON. Witnesses:

SHERMAN O. FOSTER, WILLIAM H. ROBINSON.

signature Commissioner of Patents, 

